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Thursday, October 31, 2013

While in Mexico City a few days ago, my friend Amy and I were lucky enough to witness the festivities surrounding the feast day of San Judas Tadeo (aka "San Juditas"), the patron saint of lost causes and, over the past few years, center of a new cult appealing to the disenfranchised, gang members, criminals, and the most vulnerable members of society. The makeup of St. Judas' devotees is startlingly reminiscent of that of the cult of Santa Muerte, or Saint Death, the popularity of which, as discussed by Andrew Chesnut in his book Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint, has grown much in recent years (more here). However, unlike Santa Muerte, who is basically the figure of death personified and sanctified, Saint Judas is a properly canonized saint, and thus this cult falls within the purview of legitimate church worship.

Kurt Hollander, author of the Several Ways to Die in Mexico City (more here), explained to us over tequila one evening in Mexico City that it his belief that the cult of San Judas was a calculated effort by the church to create a kind of within-the-establishment competitor to Santa Muerte. His popularity with certain fringe groups--particularly youth from the city's poorest barrios including chakas, or those of the narco sub culture--was cultivated by American priest Frederick Loos, whose expletive-filled, urban-themed sermons drew large crowds to Mexico City's Hipolito Church. His hope was to reach the tough and vulnerable youth of the barrios by speaking in their language, and by welcome them into the bosom of the church despite their open drug and criminal activities. To find out more about this inspiring man, I highly recommend watching a really amazing short New York Times video which you can see by clicking here.

The worship of Saint Judas Tadeo still takes place at Hipolito Church on the 28th of each month, with the largest celebration taking place on his feast day, October 28th. On October 27th, we witnessed hundreds if not thousands of people streaming into the city all through the day and night, many of them carrying statues of the green-clad, flame-tipped saint; one of the devotees explained to us that the size of the statue was commensurate to the sins needing pardon. There were so many people flooding the streets that cars could not drive on major boulevards, and fireworks went off all night long.

On the day of the festival, the area around the Hipolito Church was filled with statue-toting devotees, vendors of all thing San Judas, impromptu flower-bedecked processions, traditional dancing, mariachi bands, and makeshift shrines. Those lucky enough to make it into the church, we were told, would have their statues blessed, "recharging" their power until the next mass.

All photos above are my own, taken around Mexico City between October 25 and October 30th 2013; Click here to see many more.

Special thanks to Andrew Chesnut for answering my ignorant questions, and for pointing me to this article on Saint Jude
by David G. Bromley and Elizabeth Phillips, which was one of the few
helpful sources I could find in English, and which I highly recommend if you'd like to go deeper. Andrew has also been tweeting on this phenomenon of late, and his wife Fabiola took some wonderful photos documenting it; click here for more on that.

A one day, open-to-the-public Morbid Anatomy
pop-up event which will explore the interstices of art and medicine,
death and culture with screenings, a mini-symposium, a lecture on fin de siècle Parisian death themed cabarets with recreations of their classic drinks, and a panel on saints and mortification of the flesh.

2-5: Obliterated Bodies, Dissected Souls: Panel Moderated by Colin DickeyMortification of the Feminine Flesh: Elizabeth Harper
From the fatal anorexia of St. Catherine of Sienna to St. Rose of
Lima's hidden crown of nails, self-inflicted pain has become part of a
well-worn path to holiness for many Catholic women. However, these
shocking acts become comprehensible and even logical when seen as a
response to the transformation of the Church from the egalitarian early
Christian church to the strict patriarchy of the Catholic Church as we
know it. This change, coupled with Catholicism's unique views on death
and martyrdom have lead many holy women to believe that to perfect a
woman's soul, her body must be destroyed.

The Annihilated Saint: The Signifying Body of Bartholomew: Colin Dickey
Colin Dickey discusses images of torture in the cult of Christian
saints, particularly Saint Bartholomew, who was flayed alive and who is
regularly depicted holding his own skin. Inverting the traditional
relationship of torturer and powerless victim, Christian imagery turned
the act of torture into empowerment, where specific methods of torture
became iconically associated with specific saints. As the cult of the
saints waned, these images of torture began to filter into European
consciousness in bizarre and fascinating ways, as Bartholomew's singular
torture found its way into the lexicon of Renaissance anatomy
textbooks, creating a new relationship between the sublime body and the
dissected corpse.

Bringing Out the Dead: The "Anatomy Art" of Gunther von Hagens: Allison de Fren
Filmmaker/media scholar Allison de Fren discusses the corporeal
displays of controversial German anatomist Gunther von Hagens. Using
examples from both his traveling exhibition of human cadavers,
Bodyworlds, and his UK television series Anatomy for Beginners, she will
show how von Hagens recycles the visual motifs of Renaissance anatomy
theatre and art to resuscitate the practice of public dissection for
contemporary audiences

5-6: ”Cabarets of Death” : Lecture followed by fin de siècle Parisian death-themed cabarets cocktails from original recipes with Mel Gordon

Highly
illustrated lecture with reprints of the Cabaret du Néant’s menu and a
recreation of their classic drinks from original recipes.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

As some of you already know, in just a few weeks, Morbid Anatomy will be heading down to Mexico for a special Day of the Dead trip organized by Mexican writer and history of
death in Mexico scholar Salvador Olguín.

The
trip will take us to some of the of lesser-known macabre destinations
in Mexico holding unique gems associated with the culture of death. Our journey will take us to two off-the-beaten-track Day of
the Dead celebrations, special tours of obscure museums, markets selling
Day of the Dead and Santa Muerte artifacts, churches, cemeteries, and,
throughout, great regional cuisine (and drink!) and luxury
transportation...

This tour now has two empty slots due to a few drop outs; if interested in joining us, please email Salvador Olguin at info [at] borderlineprojects.com as soon as you can!

This
Halloween season, why not join Morbid Anatomy and Mexican scholar
Salvador Olguín for a very special 4-day, 4-night trip to Mexico for our
favorite holiday, Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead?

With
Mexican writer and history of death in Mexico scholar Salvador Olguín
as our guide, this tour will introduce attendees to some of the of
lesser-known macabre destinations in Mexico holding unique gems
associated with the culture of death. Our journey will take us to two
off-the-beaten-track Day of the Dead celebrations, special tours of
obscure museums, markets selling Day of the Dead and Santa Muerte
artifacts, churches, cemeteries, and, throughout, great regional cuisine
(and drink!) and luxury transportation.

Departing from Monterrey,
the trip will take us to the beautiful, historical colonial cities of
Guanajuato, Zacatecas and Aguascalientes to experience an area
traditionally described as wild and untamed within Mexico. This region
of Mexico is uniquely important to the history of death in Mexico in
that it was the home of both José Guadalupe Posada and Joaquín de
Bolaños, author of the first official Mexican biography of DeathLa Portentosa Vida de la Muerte published in 1792.

A
plethora of stores and other places for shopping, delicious food, an
evening tour of Guanajuato with live music included, and much more.

October 31
We
recommend arriving in Monterrey on the evening of Halloween, October
31. We will have a Halloween celebration, Mexican style, and we will
depart to our first destination early in the morning of November 1st.

November 1st - Monterrey/Guanajuato
We
will convene in Monterrey, Mexico at 7:30 in the morning, and leave for
the city of Guanajuato by bus. Mexico’s Museo de las Momias (Mummy
Museum) makes the small Colonial city of Guanajuato the star of this
tour. The Mummy Museum has been displaying the naturally mummified
bodies of people buried in the local cemetery for almost 150 years. A
combination of dry weather, a mineral-rich soil, and a potent
concentration of minerals in the water makes every person who has lived
and died in Guanajuato a potential mummy, according to local lore. The
museum itself is a wonderful combination of the macabre and the kitsch.
You can visit the actual cemetery and see real mummies, but you can also
visit the ‘modern’ Halloweenesque section of the museum, and eat charamuscas, a sugary candy shaped like a mummy.

November 2nd – Zacatecas
Zacatecas,
another small Colonial city in Northern Mexico, was the home of Joaquín
de Bolaños, author of the first official Mexican biography of Death.La Portentosa Vida de la Muerte was
first published in 1792, and was quickly condemned by the literary
elites and some prominent officers of the Inquisition. The book managed
to survive, and nowadays the City of Zacatecas honors Bolaños, its
prodigal son, with a festival named after him around Day of the Dead.

November 3rd – Aguascalientes
Aguascalientes
was the birthplace of José Guadalupe Posada. Posada’s Calaveras have
become icons of the festivities around Día de Muertos. In this city, we
will visit the José Guadalupe Posada Museum, which houses original
illustrations by Posada and other engravers of the time. The tour
includes an exclusive visit of the Museo Nacional de la Muerte (National
Museum of Death.)
We will be back in Monterrey by November 4
after 5:00 p.m. Please consider this for your traveling arrangements.
For more information, contact info [at] borderlineprojects.com

Cost: $600.00 USD - airfares not included, non-refundable down payment of $250.00 required by July 20 to reserve . Email info [at] borderlineprojects.com for questions.
The
$600 fee covers land transportation in a luxury bus, traveler
insurance, lodging (double rooms at hotels), taxes, breakfasts, guided
tours, tickets to all museums, special visits to some of the sites, and
special treats.

Monday, October 14, 2013

We hope very much to see you tomorrow (Tuesday, October 15th) at an evening devoted to "The Vampires of London," with an illustrated lecture and film clips (from whence the images above!) presented by Mark Pilkington of London's Strange Attractor Press!

If that does not appeal, we have many more
offerings in the weeks and months to come, including next weekend's Los Angeles based "Death Salon," a symposium devoted "to discussions of mortality and its cultural implications" (October 18-20); a new walking tour
(Forgotten Dark Histories of Lower Manhattan, October 19); a class in Halloween prosthetic make-up (October 20); a lecture on death in America and the green cemetery movement (November 7); An illustrated lecture entitled "Children of the Night”: Dracula, Degeneration and Syphilitic Births at the Fin de Siècle (November 22); bunches of
new taxidermy classes including one devoted to the legendary Jackalope
(November 3); and much more.

The images above are from tomorrow night's lecture. Full info follows on all events and workshops; Hope very much to see you at one or more!

In
late 1969, as Swinging London entered its terminal phase, reports began
to emerge of a tall, malevolent entity prowling the decaying gothic
splendor of London's Highgate Cemetery. Wielding stakes, crucifixes,
garlic bulbs and a lot of crushed velvet, a group of local youths
invaded the cemetery in search of the supernatural; newspapers quickly
picked up on the story and so the legend of Highgate Vampire was born.

In
this heavily illustrated presentation, Mark Pilkington looks at the
many themes and influences – cultural, social and geographical – that
made the appearance of The Vampire an eerie inevitability. Armed with a
wealth of stories, photographs and film clips – from Hammer classics and
Pathe newsreels to period television and Mondo obscurities – Mark will
add flesh to the bones of this undying monster.

Death Salon, Los Angeles, California
A weekend symposium devoted to to discussions of mortality and its cultural implications with special programming by Morbid Anatomy and The Order of the Good DeathDates: October 18 - 20
Full info and registration her

A one day, open-to-the-public Morbid Anatomy
pop-up event which will explore the interstices of art and medicine,
death and culture with screenings, a mini-symposium, a lecture on fin de siècle Parisian death themed cabarets with recreations of their classic drinks, and a panel on saints and mortification of the flesh.

2-5: Obliterated Bodies, Dissected Souls: Panel Moderated by Colin DickeyMortification of the Feminine Flesh: Elizabeth Harper
From the fatal anorexia of St. Catherine of Sienna to St. Rose of
Lima's hidden crown of nails, self-inflicted pain has become part of a
well-worn path to holiness for many Catholic women. However, these
shocking acts become comprehensible and even logical when seen as a
response to the transformation of the Church from the egalitarian early
Christian church to the strict patriarchy of the Catholic Church as we
know it. This change, coupled with Catholicism's unique views on death
and martyrdom have lead many holy women to believe that to perfect a
woman's soul, her body must be destroyed.

The Annihilated Saint: The Signifying Body of Bartholomew: Colin Dickey
Colin Dickey discusses images of torture in the cult of Christian
saints, particularly Saint Bartholomew, who was flayed alive and who is
regularly depicted holding his own skin. Inverting the traditional
relationship of torturer and powerless victim, Christian imagery turned
the act of torture into empowerment, where specific methods of torture
became iconically associated with specific saints. As the cult of the
saints waned, these images of torture began to filter into European
consciousness in bizarre and fascinating ways, as Bartholomew's singular
torture found its way into the lexicon of Renaissance anatomy
textbooks, creating a new relationship between the sublime body and the
dissected corpse.

Bringing Out the Dead: The "Anatomy Art" of Gunther von Hagens: Allison de Fren
Filmmaker/media scholar Allison de Fren discusses the corporeal
displays of controversial German anatomist Gunther von Hagens. Using
examples from both his traveling exhibition of human cadavers,
Bodyworlds, and his UK television series Anatomy for Beginners, she will
show how von Hagens recycles the visual motifs of Renaissance anatomy
theatre and art to resuscitate the practice of public dissection for
contemporary audiences

5-6: ”Cabarets of Death” : Lecture followed by fin de siècle Parisian death-themed cabarets cocktails from original recipes with Mel Gordon

Highly
illustrated lecture with reprints of the Cabaret du Néant’s menu and a
recreation of their classic drinks from original recipes.

_______________________________________________

Forgotten Dark Histories of Lower Manhattan : A Walking Tour
Date: Saturday, October 19th
Time: 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Admission: $20
*** Must pre-order tickets here: http://forgotten-dark-histories-nyc.eventbrite.com/
Max. number of attendees: 25
Meeting Point: Bowling Green, in front of the National Museum of the American IndianThis
tour is approximately 2 hours in duration and one mile in length. Runs
rain or shine, except in cases of severely inclement weather (e.g.
hurricane). In case of cancellation, rain date will be Nov. 2, at the
same time.
Today, learn about the ghastly, strange and
shockingly dark history of Lower Manhattan on a walking tour which wends
its way through the oldest parts of New York City. On this tour, you
will visit the site of Barnum's American Museum, which unwittingly
became its own horrific spectacle during an eerie disaster in 1865;
encounter lingering guests at one of New York's oldest and "most
haunted" taverns; learn about the violent uprisings from when New York
was still a slave state; hear the tale of New York City's very own Burke
& Hare, and the riots that followed in their wake; discover the
ironic meaning of the "Holy Ground" behind St. Paul's Chapel; learn
about the dissolute actor who sold his head to science (while he was
still alive!) and much more.

Andrea Janes is a writer and tour
guide who lives in Brooklyn, New York. Her interest in urban history and
terrifying tales led to her career of conducting walking tours of
macabre locations in New York City. She is also the author of BOROUGHS OF THE DEAD: New York City Ghost Stories.
The book is a work of fiction, but in the course of her research, she
discovered the city was a wealth of ghostly, gory stories, and decided
she wanted to share them with the world. Find out more at www.boroughsofthedead.com.
_______________________________________________Halloween Prosthetic Make-up Class with SFX Expert David Rodriguez (Mindfeargorefx)
Date: Sunday, October 20
Time: 1:00pm - 6pm
Admission: $80
*TICKETS MUST BE PRE-ORDERED HERE: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/476489
***Offsite at The Fabricoscope (41 Willow Place, #2, 11201 Brooklyn) (MAP)
Subway: Court St, Borough Hall, Jay St. Metro Tech.

What
are you planning to be for Halloween this year? Avoid that last minute
"vampire" costume with this special effects makeup class! From slit
throats to dermatological diseases, SFX Expert David Rodriguez will help
you create an original and spooky costume of your very own using the
techniques made famous by the great Hollywood film studios. Each student
will leave with several prosthetic wounds/masks suitable for Halloween
and the skills to make their own pieces in the future.

This 5 hour workshop will include :

Introduction
to materials and tools (such as wax, latex, gelatin and tubing) and
their application; students will also learn to make bald caps and mix
convincing blood.

Skin and Burns Tutorial – Students will learn
to apply latex and gelatin to create convincing 1st to 3rd degree burns
and blisters as well as other skin diseases and conditions.

Zombie
FX Tutorial - Students will learn the techniques of great zombie
makeup, from the freshly dead to the extremely decomposed.

Casualty
and Wound Tutorial – Students will learn how to mix thick blood and
create entrails; they will also learn the art of spectacular cuts,
scrapes and bruises as well as basic blood effects.

The price will cover all materials, including :

Makeup pallet with basic colors

Latex

Gelatin

Sponges

Armature for creating mask

Brushes

Blood

David Rodriguez
is a self taught New York makeup artist, Trained in traditional Fine
Art and Medical Illustration at schools such as Art and Design as well
as SVA always inspired by horror and film he began doing special effects
and makeup for the New York indy film scene learning from production to
production eventually working with such companies as MTV, Cartoon
Network, Showtime, HBO and Syfy channel working with the show Face/Off
and nearly being a contestant. He now owns and operates Mindfeargore FX a
makeup and Special effects stdio providing a line of quality services
and products ranging from prosthetics to animatronics for the
Professional and amateur costumer, Filmmaker, performer, LARPer and
Cosplayer.

Image: Tony Laurent putting on horror makeup
for show at the Grand Guignol Theater” by Hans Wild; found in Life
Magazine. Source: HERE.
_______________________________________________

Wax
artist Sigrid Sarda has returned for a special class teaching the
art of doll making. This class will revolve entirely on the creation of
a wax doll in the image of the student’s chosen saint with the relic of
their choice.

The wax doll represented as a human figure has
always fascinated man. In early times these dolls were connected to
witchcraft, magic, exorcisms for priests, and effigies. For this class
they represent talismans and reliquaries for the student’s own personal
interpretation of the saint’s meaning. The doll then becomes an object
of prayer and veneration.

Each student will receive a handmade wax
doll by Sigrid, either male or female and in turn will learn to set
eyes, root hair, color the skin tone and add special physical quirks the
saint may have, an example being stigmata or a particular wound. The
student will then realize their own decorated costumes for the saints
using patterns in the art of Victorian paper clothes making for dolls.

This class will consist of:

short talk on the history of the wax doll and everyone’s chosen saint and what it

means to them.

inserting glass eyes

rooting hair

Lunch break

rooting hair, beginning of skin coloring and adding any special physical quirks.

followed by

finish up skin coloring and quirks

insert / add relic

lunch break

make and decorate clothing for doll

dress doll

Materials
are included though the student is expected to bring their own relic.
The relic can be a lock of hair, a fingernail, bone, anything that has
meaning to the student. The trims, spangles and paper for the costumes
are either antique or vintage as are the glass eyes.

The dolls will be approx 6"-8".

Sigrid Sarda is self taught in the art of ceroplastics. She has been featured on such programs as The Midnight Archive, TV's Oddities,
and has exhibited in London and NYC. She has an upcoming residency at
The Gordon Museum in London, recreating the Black Dahlia for NoirCon
2014 and will be giving a demonstration in the art of medical wax
moulage for The New York Academy of Medicine this fall.

Anthropomorphic
taxidermy--a practice in which taxidermied animals are posed as if
engaged in human activities--was an artform made famous by Victorian
taxidermist and museologist Walter Potter. In this class, as profiled by
the New York Times, students will learn to create--from start to
finish--anthropomorphic mice inspired by the charming and imaginative
work of Mr. Potter. Your final project might take the form of a
bespectacled, whiskey swilling, top hat tipping mouse; or perhaps a
rodent mermaid queen of the burlesque world? With some props and some
artful styling, your mouse can become whatever or whomever you want;
this is the joy of anthropomorphic taxidermy.

*In this special
HALLOWEEN edition, the usual selection of miniatures and props provided
for student use will be supplemented by some extra spooky bonus items.
Students are also welcome to don costumes and other festive attire (but
it is in no way required). To further celebrate one of my favorite
holidays, we will end the class with a dark cocktail and delicious treat
:) Again, Halloween spirit is not required, but sure is fun!*

This
class will teach students everything involved in producing a fully
finished mount, including initial preparation, hygiene and sanitary
measures, fleshing, tail stripping, and dry preservation. Once properly
preserved, the mice will be posed and outfitted as the student desires,
with a selection of props and accessories provided. Students are also
encouraged to bring their own accessories and bases. All other supplies
will be provided for use in class.

Each student will leave class with a fully finished piece, and the knowledge to create their own pieces in the future.

Divya Anantharaman
is a Brooklyn based artist whose taxidermy practice was sparked by a
lifelong fascination with natural mythology and everyday oddities. After
a journey filled with trial and error, numerous books, and an inspiring
class (Sue Jeiven's popular Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class at
Observatory!), she has found her calling in creating sickly sweet and
sparkly critters. Beginning with mice and sparrows, her menagerie grew
to include domestic cats, woodchucks, and deer. Recently profiled on
Vice Fringes, the New York Observer, and other publications, she will
also be appearing in the upcoming season of Oddities-and is definitely
up to no good shenanigans. You can find out more at www.d-i-v-y-a.com
Also, some technical notes:

We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.

Everyone will be provided with gloves.

All animals are disease free.

Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone

This
class will introduce students to the process and techniques behind more
advanced basic small mammal taxidermy. Students will learn how to skin,
prep, preserve, mount, and position the animal. Attention will be
focused on how to properly split, turn, and position rabbit ears. Basic
armatures will be used and custom made forms (made by me) will be
provided. Students will learn how to make a custom body for their
specimens using an old traditional taxidermy technique of wrapping a
body. Using the carcass for reference, students will learn how to build
up and craft the bodies. Pre-sculpted antlers or antler tips will be
provided. Students encouraged to bring in any props they may want to
dress the animal up in. I will provide all specimens, materials, and
tools for the class. Each student will leave with his or her own
finished mount.

---------------------------Katie Innamorato,
artist and Rogue Taxidermist, is a member of the M.A.R.T. or Minnesota
Association of Rogue Taxidermists. She is professionally and self taught
in taxidermy; winning awards and ribbons every year at the GSTA. She
explores the commercial relationships between animals and our society
and her work questions the idea of bringing nature inside. She also
examines the cyclical connections between life and death, and growth and
decomposition. As with all M.A.R.T. members she adheres to strict
ethical guidelines when acquiring specimens. She uses roadkill, scrap
skins from other taxidermists and the garment industry, and donated
skins to create her artworks; almost every part of the animal is
utilized.

Her work has been featured recently on the new Science
Channel show, "Odd Folks Home," on the hit Science and Discovery Channel
TV show, "Oddities," and exhibited at La Luz de Jesus Gallery in Los
Angeles, CA.

Death in America and the Green Cemetery Movement
An Illustrated lecture by funeral director Amy Cunningham
Date: Thursday, November 7
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $8
Location: Observatory, Brooklyn (543 Union Street (at Nevins), Brooklyn, NY 11215)
Each
year in the U.S., the death care industry buries enough formaldehyde to
fill eight Olympic sized swimming pools, enough metal in caskets form
to rebuild the Golden Gate Bridge, and enough concrete in burial vaults
to construct a two-lane highway running halfway across the country.
While our cemeteries are rich with national and local histories, natural
habitats and remembrances of the dead, they’re also a blazing locus of
waste and pollution.

In tonight's illustrated lecture, funeral
director Amy Cunningham will share the history of American death
practices from Victorian family-centric rituals to contemporary ideas of
the "green cemetery," a grassroots movement dedicated to the
development of ecologically responsible and meaningful end-of-life
rituals.

Amy Cunningham is a New York licensed funeral director
and celebrant who specializes in helping families plan sustainable
end-of-life rituals. A former magazine journalist, she maintains a blog
called TheInspiredFuneral.com.

In
this hands-on class, we will study the wiley ermine! Also known as a
white weasel (they are actually brown in the summer, and turn white in
the winter), this small creature used to be harvested by the hundreds
for the plush robes of royalty-but not so much anymore. It has become
less profitable since they are small animals (and do not yield lots of
fur like the more popular fox or coyote)-so much that the ones used in
class were collected from a game farm and tannery downsizing business
and discarding old stock of unwanted frozen animals. Students will
create a fully-finished mount in a naturalistic or anthropomorphic
position. Students will learn everything involved in producing a
finished mount - from initial preparation, hygiene and sanitary
measures, to proper technique and dry preservation.

The class will teach
how to create a wrapped body form using the ermine's own body as
reference. Students will have the choice of cleaning and reconstructing
the skull, or carving one using the natural one as reference. The use of
anatomical study, reference photos, and detailed observation will also
be reviewed as important tools in recreating the natural poses and
expressions that magically reanimate a specimen. A selection of props
will be provided, however, students are welcome to bring their own bases
and accessories if something specific is desired. All other supplies
will be provided for use in class.

Each student will leave class with a fully finished piece, and the knowledge to create their own pieces in the future.

Divya Anantharaman
is a Brooklyn based artist whose taxidermy practice was sparked by a
lifelong fascination with natural mythology and everyday oddities. After
a journey filled with trial and error, numerous books, and an inspiring
class (Sue Jeiven's popular Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class at
Observatory!), she has found her calling in creating sickly sweet and
sparkly critters. Beginning with mice and sparrows, her menagerie grew
to include domestic cats, woodchucks, and deer. Recently profiled on
Vice Fringes, the New York Observer, and other publications, she will
also be appearing in the upcoming season of Oddities-and is definitely
up to no good shenanigans. You can find out more at www.d-i-v-y-a.com
Also, some technical notes:

We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.

Everyone will be provided with gloves.

All animals are disease free.

Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone

All animals were already dead, nothing was killed for this class.

Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the class.

_______________________________________________

Mother Machine: an ‘Uncanny Valley’ in the Eighteenth Century
Illustrated lecture with Dr. Brandy Schillace

Known
by a variety of names—“this most curious machine,” “this mock woman,”
and the “celebrated Apparatus” —Dr. William Smellie’s mechanized
obstetrical phantom was both science and spectacle in the eighteenth
century. Strangely, however, though crucial to the training of at least
900 man-midwives in ten years, the machine disappears from both the
actual and rhetorical "scene" of 18th-century obstetrical science.

This
illustrated talk will explore the mitigating factors contributing to
the machine's disappearance. Why was such a valuable teaching tool
auctioned to the public after Smellie’s death? Why did famed
obstetrician William Hunter agree to sell his own copy of the machine to
Dr. Foster of the Dublin Rotunda? And why—after so much popular
debate—does the machine disappear from public notice by the latter part
of the century? Dr. Schillace will also document her own rather
circuitous journey of discovery, that is, the necessary labor of
unearthing (if not birthing) a medical artifact’s unusual history.Dr. Brandy Schillace
is an interdisciplinary, medical-humanist scholar. She writes about
cultural production, history of science, and intersections of medicine
and literature. She is the managing editor of Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry,
an international journal of cross-cultural health research and a guest
curator and blogger for the Dittrick Medical History Museum. Dr.
Schillace was the keynote speaker for the annual meeting of the
Archivists and Librarians in the History of Health Sciences 2013, and is
the recent recipient of the Chawton House Library Fellowship (for study
of 18th century women writers) and the Wood Institute travel grant from
the Philadelphia College of Physicians. She has also an edited book
collection under contingent contract with Cambria Press: Birthing the Monster of Tomorrow: Unnatural Reproductions. For a selection of recently published work, please visit http://fictionreboot-dailydose.com/publications-and-press.

Image: A
late eighteenth-century “birthing phantom.” Unlike Smellie’s machine,
these were not intended to be exactly like the living body, but rather a
basic replica allowing midwives to understand the position of the child
in the birth canal. By permission of the Dittrick Medical History Center and Museum
_______________________________________________

Bram Stoker’s Dracula is often read as a narrative of reverse colonization, revealing fears of degeneration at the fin de siècle.
Anxieties over the decline of empire and—as both symptom and
consequence—the degeneration of masculinity in Victorian Britain
resulted in a number of dystopic narratives, each revealing an uneasy
relationship between evolution and devolution, sexuality, sexual
identity and mental health. However, the signal terror of Stoker’s
vampires lies not only in their overt sexuality and promiscuity—but also
in their fecundity. As Van Helsing warns, the vampire is not a single
foe but a potential army. Both “father” and unnatural mother, Count
Dracula is capable of reproducing the undead—and yet his victims do not,
it seems reproduce themselves.

In this presentation Dr. Schillace
will explore accounts of syphilitic infection as a means of
understanding the complexities of infection among the “innocents,” Lucy
Westenra and the children she victimizes. Culminating in a
re-examination of the only human birth in Stoker’s novel—Mina Harker’s
son Quincy—this project seeks to provide new insight into 19th century
anxieties about degeneration’s naissance.

Dr. Brandy Schillace
is an interdisciplinary, medical-humanist scholar. She writes about
cultural production, history of science, and intersections of medicine
and literature. She is the managing editor of Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry,
an international journal of cross-cultural health research and a guest
curator and blogger for the Dittrick Medical History Museum. Dr.
Schillace was the keynote speaker for the annual meeting of the
Archivists and Librarians in the History of Health Sciences 2013, and is
the recent recipient of the Chawton House Library Fellowship (for study
of 18th century women writers) and the Wood Institute travel grant from
the Philadelphia College of Physicians. She also an edited book
collection under contingent contract with Cambria Press: Birthing the Monster of Tomorrow: Unnatural Reproductions. For a selection of recently published work, please visit http://fictionreboot-dailydose.com/publications-and-press.
_______________________________________________

In
this intimate, hands-on class (limited to only six students), we will
study the happy and hoppy rabbit! Students will create a fully-finished
rabbit mount in a naturalistic or anthropomorphic position. There is
also the option to create a "trophy style" shoulder mount (where the
head and shoulder is mounted on a wooden plaque). When purchasing
ticket, please specify which you would like to do.

Students will
learn everything involved in producing a finished mount - from initial
preparation, hygiene and sanitary measures, to proper technique and dry
preservation. The class will teach how to create a wrapped body form
using the rabbit's own body as reference, and how to reconstruct a
rabbit head using the skull as reference. Students will also be
introduced to the techniques of ear turning and ear carding. The use of
anatomical study, reference photos, and detailed observation will also
be reviewed as important tools in recreating the natural poses and
expressions that magically reanimate a specimen. A selection of props
will be provided, however, students are welcome to bring their own bases
and accessories if something specific is desired. All other supplies
will be provided for use in class.

Each student will leave class with a fully finished piece, and the knowledge to create their own pieces in the future.

Divya Anantharaman
is a Brooklyn based artist whose taxidermy practice was sparked by a
lifelong fascination with natural mythology and everyday oddities. After
a journey filled with trial and error, numerous books, and an inspiring
class (Sue Jeiven's popular Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class at
Observatory!), she has found her calling in creating sickly sweet and
sparkly critters. Beginning with mice and sparrows, her menagerie grew
to include domestic cats, woodchucks, and deer. Recently profiled on
Vice Fringes, the New York Observer, and other publications, she will
also be appearing in the upcoming season of Oddities-and is definitely
up to no good shenanigans. You can find out more at www.d-i-v-y-a.com

Also, some technical notes:

We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.

Everyone will be provided with gloves.

All animals are disease free.

Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone

All animals were already dead, nothing was killed for this class.

Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the class.

Full list and more information on all events can be found here. More on the Morbid Anatomy Art Academy can be found here.

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Are you are free and in or about the greater New York area tomorrow night--Monday October 14? If so, perhaps you might be interested in a night of short lectures devoted to the notion of "Haunted History," organized by The Society for the Advancement of Social Studies! As part of the evening's festivities, Morbid Anatomy's Joanna Ebenstein will be giving a heavily-illustrated talk on death-themed arts, crafts and amusements; Todd Cobb will relay the history of the ghost story; and the lovely Michelle Legro will " reveal the grisly beginnings" of the Madame Tussaud Empire.

The event is also free, and there will be drinks and music!

Full details follow; hope to see you there!

"Haunted History" Presented by The Society for the Advancement of Social Studies

The
Society for the Advancement of Social Studies (SASS!) is proud to
present a series of free lectures designed to both entertain and
enlighten. Once a month we meet at a bar to discuss historical topics
that you probably knew at one point but don’t remember anymore. Plus,
themed drink specials.

Monday night's event on Haunted History will consist of three short lectures:

Cultures of Death: An Informal History, in which the Morbid Anatomy Library's Joanna Ebenstein will talk about how death-themed arts, crafts and amusements have been used as medication for our own feelings on the topic.

The History of Ghost Stories, Featuring Historic Ghost Stories, in which Todd Cobb tells us why cultures the world over are fascinated by these nebulous beings.

Madame Tussaud: Hot Wax and Cold Stiffs, in which Michelle Legro reveals the grisly beginnings of this Times Square classic.

LONDON DAY OF THE DEAD
Saturday 12th October 2013
33 Fitzroy Square, London W1T 6EU

Can you legally bury someone in your garden in London?
Why have only a third of Londoners made a will?
Do you know what will happen to your Facebook account after you’ve updated your status for the very last time?

To answer these and many other curious questions about the past, present and future of death in the city we have programmed a London Day of the Dead for Hendricks Carnival of Knowledge. Join us to meet an undertaker, make a last will and testament, a death mask, a memorial offering or a ‘things I must do before I die’ list.

With workshops, a shrine, a series of fascinating speakers and experts London Death – and Life – will be vividly evoked.

1. LONDON: CITY OF BONE
1.00pm – 3.00pm
BUY TICKETS

Join Robert Stephenson and Jelena Bekvalac to explore what happened to some of the many Londoners before us.

Historian and esoteric London expert ROBERT STEPHENSON will take us on a dance macabre around the capital’s corporeal past and show how the city’s mighty and humble have often been brought to peculiar and poignant ends.

What happens to bones found during excavations for shiny new towers or rail routes? And what do they tell us about their previous owners? JELENA BEKVALAC, the Museum of London’s curator of osteology uncovers some of London’s skeletal remains.
Followed by conversation, questions and answers.

2. THE LONDON WAY OF DEATH 3.30pm – 5.30pm
BUY TICKETS

Join Matt Brown and Brian Parsons to explore ‘London Undone’

What do Blackfriars, Denmark Street, Regents Park and Colney Hatch have in common? Londonist editor MATT BROWN informs and surprises with strange and little known stories of how the capital has accidentally seen off large numbers of its inhabitants.

When death overtakes us, who will undertake us? And where in London will they take us? Writer BRIAN PARSONS provides a fascinating insight into the history and practice of London undertaking, showing how the city’s cultural character is reflected in its funerals and burial rituals.
Followed by conversation, questions and answers.

3. LONDON HEREAFTER
7.30pm – 9.30pm
BUY TICKETS

Join John Troyer and James Norris to explore the ‘City without us’ and reveal some surprising facts for Londoners.

The choices for the afterlife are increasing. DR JOHN TROYER of the Center for Death and Society gives a glimpse into new technologies of ‘disposal’ including sonic boom dispersion, green burial, freeze drying, and holographic graveyards.

What will happen to our online life when we’re gone? Is a ‘social’ presence possible in the hereafter? JAMES NORRIS founder of DeadSocial provides a ‘digital legacy tool’ enabling living Londoners to creatively cross into their real ‘Second Life’.

Followed by conversation, questions and answers.

DEATH MASKS WORKSHOP
1.00pm – 3.00pm
FREE
Craft mistresses KAREN SHAND and JOANNA WHELAN of Use it up – Wear it Out’ will bring their mobile workshop to guide you through the making of your own mask of death. With jewellery, haberdashery, trimmings and embellishments, they will guide particpants to create their own non-self image to wear, take home or to offer up on our Day Of The Dead Shrine.

LAST WORDS WORKSHOP
3.30pm – 5.30pm
FREE
Our Last Will and Testament is our final chance to address the world we are leaving behind us – but most people now living in London have not made one. Why? JAMES NORRIS of Dead Social will be on hand to answer these and other questions and show that not only is it possible to enjoy creating a legacy for the next life but that doing so will improve this one.

Participants will be guided through the process of making a will with a genuine Hendricks Last Will and Testament legal document.

MEET THE UNDERTAKER WORKSHOP
7.30pm – 9.30pm
FREE
Is it possible to be buried in central London? What would it cost?
What are the top ten London funerary songs? What are the strangest things that people put in the coffin with their loved ones? What happens to the parts of us that won’t burn? RICHARD PUTT of Levertons, undertakers to the Royal Family, Margaret Thatcher and many others will offer attendees the chance to ask all the questions they have always wanted to about “a day in the life of death for a London Undertaker.”
PLUS

DRESSES TO DIE FOR PRESENTATION
6.30pm – 7.00pm
FREE
Join style icon, DJ and fashion historian AMBER JANE BUTCHART in the basement cinema as she waltzes you through the Victorian Fetish for Funereal Fashion in a presentation on the gorgeous depths of sentimental sartorial style, and corporeal couture with a brief history of black.

LONDON UNDEAD
7.30pm – 8.30pm
FREE
Take to the cinema to join WILL FOWLER BFI curator as he explores, digs up and puts a stake through the heart of the Highgate Vampire legend with music, movie clips, stories and images of Highgate cemetery. Spooky and introspective this is a glorious venture into the macabre world of cult film, mondo and exploitation. No Garlic allowed.

LONDON DAY OF THE DEAD SHRINE – On the first floor landing.
Bring an offering for a dead loved Londoner, make a mask for a live one, or a ‘things I must do before I die’ list for yourself and offer them here at this specially made shrine by JESSICA BREWER.

The ANTIQUE BEAT BOUTIQUE will be present and patrolling. We will be releasing new and very curious gifts.

Monday, October 7, 2013

Regular Morbid Anatomy readers are probably already familiar with the work of Dr. Paul Koudounaris, the incomparable author/photographer behind the amazing book Empire of Death. This Friday--October 11--The Morbid Anatomy Library is thrilled to be hosting Mr. Koudounaris for an evening dedicated to jeweled sacred skeletons as explored in his newest book, the heavily illustrated (see above) Heavenly Bodies. The
evening begins at 8 PM, but we highly recommend you come a bit early to secure a
seat, as Paul's lectures are usually standing room only affairs.

If jeweled skeletons are not of interest, Morbid Anatomy has many more offerings in the weeks and months to come, including a new walking tour (Forgotten Dark Histories of Lower Manhattan, October 19); bunches of new taxidermy classes including one devoted to the legendary Jackalope (November 3); a class in Halloween prosthetic make-up (October 20); a class in the making of sugar skulls (October 13) and much more.

These
largely anonymous skeletons were presented as the remains of Early
Christian martyrs, and treated as sacred. They were sent to Catholic
churches and religious houses in German-speaking Europe to replace the
holy relics that had been destroyed in the wake of the Protestant
Reformation. Here, the skeletons would be carefully reassembled and
richly adorned with jewels and precious costumes by teams of nuns.
Intended as flamboyant devotional items, they are now considered some of
the finest works of art ever created in the medium of human bone. As
time passed, faith in these sumptuously decorated skeletons--once an
important part of the spiritual life of many people--wavered, until
finally they were cast out during the Enlightenment as remnants of a
superstitious and embarrassing Catholic past.

Largely forgotten in
the annals of religious history, Dr. Koudounaris gained unprecedented
access to religious institutions where the surviving decorated skeletons
are held. His photographs are the first that were ever taken of many of
them, and the images which will accompany his lecture are bizarre,
moving, and beautiful.

Dr. Paul Koudounaris
holds a PhD in Art History (UCLA) and has taught classes at numerous
universities and published in magazines throughout the world. He is the
author of The Empire of Death, the first illustrated history of charnel
houses and religious sanctuaries decorated with human bone. Named one of
the ten best books of 2011 (London Evening Standard), it has garnered
international attention for its combination of unique historical
research and stunning photography.

Photo: Photo by Dr. Paul Koudounaris, tonight's speaker, from his new book "Heavenly Bodies."
_______________________________________________

Mexico's rich relationship with death extends far beyond its renowned Dia de los Muertos,
or Day of the Dead, a holiday related to Catholic All Souls' Day in
which the spirits of the dead are enticed back to the land of the living
with traditional food and drink, elaborate altars, and sugar skulls
(see image). Indeed, from Mexico's indigenous Mayans, to the artwork of José Posada and the cult phenomenon of Santa Muerte,
to today's über-violent drug wars, death has taken a prominent role in
the formation of the country's culture, leading scholar Claudio Lomnitz
to single out Death herself as the symbol of Mexico's national identity.

Today's event will celebrate and plumb the history of Dia de los Muertos
with a lecture followed by a sugar skull making workshop. The lecture
seeks to contextualize this enigmatic holiday, framing what is often
thought of as the Mexican version of Halloween within the greater
context of a culture that has blended indigenous practices, Spanish
Catholic beliefs and responses to revolutions and violence, leading to
an embracing of death as a necessary part of life rather than a specter
to be avoided and feared.

In the workshop, attendees will be
provided with a blank, undecorated sugar skull, fully assembled, dried,
and ready to decorate. Royal icing in bright colors as well as other
traditional decorative materials such as sequins and colored foils will
be provided. Each attendee is encouraged to bring any personal
decorating items they wish to use if they are making a skull for a
specific departed individual, though smaller items are recommended.
Traditional themes and patterns will be discussed, as well as decoration
application techniques. At the end of the workshop, each person will
have their own large sugar skull to take home. Because of the drying
time involved with the royal icing, it is advised that skulls be left to
dry and set. Extra blank skulls will be available for purchase for
those interested, as well as directions for making the royal icing
recipe that is recommended for skull decoration.

Dru Munsell
is a biological anthropology degree candidate at Columbia University
specializing in forensics, pathological human anatomy, and cultural
fetish and taboo. She examines these topics in her thesis on the
intersection of science and spectacle as literally embodied by both the
"born different" and "working acts" of sideshow and circus performance.
Dru currently works as an intern for the Morbid Anatomy Library as well
as a scientific consultant, archivist, transcriber, and
Jane-of-all-Trades for James Taylor's Shocked & Amazed: On and Off
the Midway. After completing her studies, she plans to either work with
the governmental agency, DMORT, doing body identification at scenes of
mass death with a particular interest in the mass graves of
post-colonial revolutions and genocides in Latin America, or running
away and joining the circus.

In
late 1969, as Swinging London entered its terminal phase, reports began
to emerge of a tall, malevolent entity prowling the decaying gothic
splendor of London's Highgate Cemetery. Wielding stakes, crucifixes,
garlic bulbs and a lot of crushed velvet, a group of local youths
invaded the cemetery in search of the supernatural; newspapers quickly
picked up on the story and so the legend of Highgate Vampire was born.

In
this heavily illustrated presentation, Mark Pilkington looks at the
many themes and influences – cultural, social and geographical – that
made the appearance of The Vampire an eerie inevitability. Armed with a
wealth of stories, photographs and film clips – from Hammer classics and
Pathe newsreels to period television and Mondo obscurities – Mark will
add flesh to the bones of this undying monster.

Death Salon, Los Angeles, California
A weekend symposium devoted to to discussions of mortality and its cultural implications with special programming by Morbid Anatomy and The Order of the Good DeathDates: October 18 - 20
Full info and registration her

A one day, open-to-the-public Morbid Anatomy
pop-up event which will explore the interstices of art and medicine,
death and culture with screenings, a mini-symposium, a lecture on fin de siècle Parisian death themed cabarets with recreations of their classic drinks, and a panel on saints and mortification of the flesh.

2-5: Obliterated Bodies, Dissected Souls: Panel Moderated by Colin DickeyMortification of the Feminine Flesh: Elizabeth Harper
From the fatal anorexia of St. Catherine of Sienna to St. Rose of
Lima's hidden crown of nails, self-inflicted pain has become part of a
well-worn path to holiness for many Catholic women. However, these
shocking acts become comprehensible and even logical when seen as a
response to the transformation of the Church from the egalitarian early
Christian church to the strict patriarchy of the Catholic Church as we
know it. This change, coupled with Catholicism's unique views on death
and martyrdom have lead many holy women to believe that to perfect a
woman's soul, her body must be destroyed.

The Annihilated Saint: The Signifying Body of Bartholomew: Colin Dickey
Colin Dickey discusses images of torture in the cult of Christian
saints, particularly Saint Bartholomew, who was flayed alive and who is
regularly depicted holding his own skin. Inverting the traditional
relationship of torturer and powerless victim, Christian imagery turned
the act of torture into empowerment, where specific methods of torture
became iconically associated with specific saints. As the cult of the
saints waned, these images of torture began to filter into European
consciousness in bizarre and fascinating ways, as Bartholomew's singular
torture found its way into the lexicon of Renaissance anatomy
textbooks, creating a new relationship between the sublime body and the
dissected corpse.

Bringing Out the Dead: The "Anatomy Art" of Gunther von Hagens: Allison de Fren
Filmmaker/media scholar Allison de Fren discusses the corporeal
displays of controversial German anatomist Gunther von Hagens. Using
examples from both his traveling exhibition of human cadavers,
Bodyworlds, and his UK television series Anatomy for Beginners, she will
show how von Hagens recycles the visual motifs of Renaissance anatomy
theatre and art to resuscitate the practice of public dissection for
contemporary audiences

5-6: ”Cabarets of Death” : Lecture followed by fin de siècle Parisian death-themed cabarets cocktails from original recipes with Mel Gordon

Highly
illustrated lecture with reprints of the Cabaret du Néant’s menu and a
recreation of their classic drinks from original recipes.

Today,
join former AMNH Senior Insect Preparator Daisy Tainton for
Observatory's popular Anthropomorphic Insect Shadowbox Workshop. In this
class, students will work with Rhinoceros beetles: nature's tiny
giants. Each student will learn to make--and leave with their
own!--shadowbox dioramas featuring carefully positioned beetles doing
nearly anything you can imagine. Beetles and shadowboxes are provided,
and an assortment of miniature furniture, foods, and other props will be
available to decorate your habitat. Students need bring nothing, though
are encouraged to bring along dollhouse props if they have a particular
vision for their final piece; 1:12 scale work best.

BEETLES WILL BE PROVIDED. Each student receives one beetle approximately 2-3 inches tall when posed vertically.

Daisy Taintonwas
formerly Senior Insect Preparator at the American Museum of Natural
History, and has been working with insects professionally for several
years. Eventually her fascination with insects and love of Japanese
miniature food items naturally came together, resulting in cute and
ridiculous museum-inspired yet utterly unrealistic dioramas. Beetles at
the dentist? Beetles eating pie and knitting sweaters? Even beetles on
the toilet? Why not?
_______________________________________________

Forgotten Dark Histories of Lower Manhattan : A Walking Tour
Date: Saturday, October 19th
Time: 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Admission: $20
*** Must pre-order tickets here: http://forgotten-dark-histories-nyc.eventbrite.com/
Max. number of attendees: 25
Meeting Point: Bowling Green, in front of the National Museum of the American IndianThis
tour is approximately 2 hours in duration and one mile in length. Runs
rain or shine, except in cases of severely inclement weather (e.g.
hurricane). In case of cancellation, rain date will be Nov. 2, at the
same time.
Today, learn about the ghastly, strange and
shockingly dark history of Lower Manhattan on a walking tour which wends
its way through the oldest parts of New York City. On this tour, you
will visit the site of Barnum's American Museum, which unwittingly
became its own horrific spectacle during an eerie disaster in 1865;
encounter lingering guests at one of New York's oldest and "most
haunted" taverns; learn about the violent uprisings from when New York
was still a slave state; hear the tale of New York City's very own Burke
& Hare, and the riots that followed in their wake; discover the
ironic meaning of the "Holy Ground" behind St. Paul's Chapel; learn
about the dissolute actor who sold his head to science (while he was
still alive!) and much more.

Andrea Janes is a writer and tour
guide who lives in Brooklyn, New York. Her interest in urban history and
terrifying tales led to her career of conducting walking tours of
macabre locations in New York City. She is also the author of BOROUGHS OF THE DEAD: New York City Ghost Stories.
The book is a work of fiction, but in the course of her research, she
discovered the city was a wealth of ghostly, gory stories, and decided
she wanted to share them with the world. Find out more at www.boroughsofthedead.com.
_______________________________________________Halloween Prosthetic Make-up Class with SFX Expert David Rodriguez (Mindfeargorefx)
Date: Sunday, October 20
Time: 1:00pm - 6pm
Admission: $80
*TICKETS MUST BE PRE-ORDERED HERE: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/476489
***Offsite at The Fabricoscope (41 Willow Place, #2, 11201 Brooklyn) (MAP)
Subway: Court St, Borough Hall, Jay St. Metro Tech.

What
are you planning to be for Halloween this year? Avoid that last minute
"vampire" costume with this special effects makeup class! From slit
throats to dermatological diseases, SFX Expert David Rodriguez will help
you create an original and spooky costume of your very own using the
techniques made famous by the great Hollywood film studios. Each student
will leave with several prosthetic wounds/masks suitable for Halloween
and the skills to make their own pieces in the future.

This 5 hour workshop will include :

Introduction
to materials and tools (such as wax, latex, gelatin and tubing) and
their application; students will also learn to make bald caps and mix
convincing blood.

Skin and Burns Tutorial – Students will learn
to apply latex and gelatin to create convincing 1st to 3rd degree burns
and blisters as well as other skin diseases and conditions.

Zombie
FX Tutorial - Students will learn the techniques of great zombie
makeup, from the freshly dead to the extremely decomposed.

Casualty
and Wound Tutorial – Students will learn how to mix thick blood and
create entrails; they will also learn the art of spectacular cuts,
scrapes and bruises as well as basic blood effects.

The price will cover all materials, including :

Makeup pallet with basic colors

Latex

Gelatin

Sponges

Armature for creating mask

Brushes

Blood

David Rodriguez
is a self taught New York makeup artist, Trained in traditional Fine
Art and Medical Illustration at schools such as Art and Design as well
as SVA always inspired by horror and film he began doing special effects
and makeup for the New York indy film scene learning from production to
production eventually working with such companies as MTV, Cartoon
Network, Showtime, HBO and Syfy channel working with the show Face/Off
and nearly being a contestant. He now owns and operates Mindfeargore FX a
makeup and Special effects stdio providing a line of quality services
and products ranging from prosthetics to animatronics for the
Professional and amateur costumer, Filmmaker, performer, LARPer and
Cosplayer.

Image: Tony Laurent putting on horror makeup for show at the Grand Guignol Theater” by Hans Wild; found in Life Magazine. Source: HERE.
_______________________________________________

Wax
artist Sigrid Sarda has returned for a special 2 day class teaching the
art of doll making. This class will revolve entirely on the creation of
a wax doll in the image of the student’s chosen saint with the relic of
their choice.

The wax doll represented as a human figure has
always fascinated man. In early times these dolls were connected to
witchcraft, magic, exorcisms for priests, and effigies. For this class
they represent talismans and reliquaries for the student’s own personal
interpretation of the saint’s meaning. The doll then becomes an object
of prayer and veneration.

Each student will receive a handmade wax
doll by Sigrid, either male or female and in turn will learn to set
eyes, root hair, color the skin tone and add special physical quirks the
saint may have, an example being stigmata or a particular wound. The
student will then realize their own decorated costumes for the saints
using patterns in the art of Victorian paper clothes making for dolls.

This class will consist of:

short talk on the history of the wax doll and everyone’s chosen saint and what it

means to them.

inserting glass eyes

rooting hair

Lunch break

rooting hair, beginning of skin coloring and adding any special physical quirks.

followed by

finish up skin coloring and quirks

insert / add relic

lunch break

make and decorate clothing for doll

dress doll

Materials
are included though the student is expected to bring their own relic.
The relic can be a lock of hair, a fingernail, bone, anything that has
meaning to the student. The trims, spangles and paper for the costumes
are either antique or vintage as are the glass eyes.

The dolls will be approx 6"-8".

Sigrid Sarda is self taught in the art of ceroplastics. She has been featured on such programs as The Midnight Archive, TV's Oddities,
and has exhibited in London and NYC. She has an upcoming residency at
The Gordon Museum in London, recreating the Black Dahlia for NoirCon
2014 and will be giving a demonstration in the art of medical wax
moulage for The New York Academy of Medicine this fall.

Anthropomorphic
taxidermy--a practice in which taxidermied animals are posed as if
engaged in human activities--was an artform made famous by Victorian
taxidermist and museologist Walter Potter. In this class, as profiled by
the New York Times, students will learn to create--from start to
finish--anthropomorphic mice inspired by the charming and imaginative
work of Mr. Potter. Your final project might take the form of a
bespectacled, whiskey swilling, top hat tipping mouse; or perhaps a
rodent mermaid queen of the burlesque world? With some props and some
artful styling, your mouse can become whatever or whomever you want;
this is the joy of anthropomorphic taxidermy.

*In this special
HALLOWEEN edition, the usual selection of miniatures and props provided
for student use will be supplemented by some extra spooky bonus items.
Students are also welcome to don costumes and other festive attire (but
it is in no way required). To further celebrate one of my favorite
holidays, we will end the class with a dark cocktail and delicious treat
:) Again, Halloween spirit is not required, but sure is fun!*

This
class will teach students everything involved in producing a fully
finished mount, including initial preparation, hygiene and sanitary
measures, fleshing, tail stripping, and dry preservation. Once properly
preserved, the mice will be posed and outfitted as the student desires,
with a selection of props and accessories provided. Students are also
encouraged to bring their own accessories and bases. All other supplies
will be provided for use in class.

Each student will leave class with a fully finished piece, and the knowledge to create their own pieces in the future.

Divya Anantharaman
is a Brooklyn based artist whose taxidermy practice was sparked by a
lifelong fascination with natural mythology and everyday oddities. After
a journey filled with trial and error, numerous books, and an inspiring
class (Sue Jeiven's popular Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class at
Observatory!), she has found her calling in creating sickly sweet and
sparkly critters. Beginning with mice and sparrows, her menagerie grew
to include domestic cats, woodchucks, and deer. Recently profiled on
Vice Fringes, the New York Observer, and other publications, she will
also be appearing in the upcoming season of Oddities-and is definitely
up to no good shenanigans. You can find out more at www.d-i-v-y-a.com
Also, some technical notes:

We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.

Everyone will be provided with gloves.

All animals are disease free.

Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone

This
class will introduce students to the process and techniques behind more
advanced basic small mammal taxidermy. Students will learn how to skin,
prep, preserve, mount, and position the animal. Attention will be
focused on how to properly split, turn, and position rabbit ears. Basic
armatures will be used and custom made forms (made by me) will be
provided. Students will learn how to make a custom body for their
specimens using an old traditional taxidermy technique of wrapping a
body. Using the carcass for reference, students will learn how to build
up and craft the bodies. Pre-sculpted antlers or antler tips will be
provided. Students encouraged to bring in any props they may want to
dress the animal up in. I will provide all specimens, materials, and
tools for the class. Each student will leave with his or her own
finished mount.

---------------------------Katie Innamorato,
artist and Rogue Taxidermist, is a member of the M.A.R.T. or Minnesota
Association of Rogue Taxidermists. She is professionally and self taught
in taxidermy; winning awards and ribbons every year at the GSTA. She
explores the commercial relationships between animals and our society
and her work questions the idea of bringing nature inside. She also
examines the cyclical connections between life and death, and growth and
decomposition. As with all M.A.R.T. members she adheres to strict
ethical guidelines when acquiring specimens. She uses roadkill, scrap
skins from other taxidermists and the garment industry, and donated
skins to create her artworks; almost every part of the animal is
utilized.

Her work has been featured recently on the new Science
Channel show, "Odd Folks Home," on the hit Science and Discovery Channel
TV show, "Oddities," and exhibited at La Luz de Jesus Gallery in Los
Angeles, CA.

Death in America and the Green Cemetery Movement
An Illustrated lecture by funeral director Amy Cunningham
Date: Thursday, November 7
Time: 8:00 PM
Admission: $8
Location: Observatory, Brooklyn (543 Union Street (at Nevins), Brooklyn, NY 11215)
Each
year in the U.S., the death care industry buries enough formaldehyde to
fill eight Olympic sized swimming pools, enough metal in caskets form
to rebuild the Golden Gate Bridge, and enough concrete in burial vaults
to construct a two-lane highway running halfway across the country.
While our cemeteries are rich with national and local histories, natural
habitats and remembrances of the dead, they’re also a blazing locus of
waste and pollution.

In tonight's illustrated lecture, funeral
director Amy Cunningham will share the history of American death
practices from Victorian family-centric rituals to contemporary ideas of
the "green cemetery," a grassroots movement dedicated to the
development of ecologically responsible and meaningful end-of-life
rituals.

Amy Cunningham is a New York licensed funeral director
and celebrant who specializes in helping families plan sustainable
end-of-life rituals. A former magazine journalist, she maintains a blog
called TheInspiredFuneral.com.

In
this hands-on class, we will study the wiley ermine! Also known as a
white weasel (they are actually brown in the summer, and turn white in
the winter), this small creature used to be harvested by the hundreds
for the plush robes of royalty-but not so much anymore. It has become
less profitable since they are small animals (and do not yield lots of
fur like the more popular fox or coyote)-so much that the ones used in
class were collected from a game farm and tannery downsizing business
and discarding old stock of unwanted frozen animals. Students will
create a fully-finished mount in a naturalistic or anthropomorphic
position. Students will learn everything involved in producing a
finished mount - from initial preparation, hygiene and sanitary
measures, to proper technique and dry preservation.

The class will teach
how to create a wrapped body form using the ermine's own body as
reference. Students will have the choice of cleaning and reconstructing
the skull, or carving one using the natural one as reference. The use of
anatomical study, reference photos, and detailed observation will also
be reviewed as important tools in recreating the natural poses and
expressions that magically reanimate a specimen. A selection of props
will be provided, however, students are welcome to bring their own bases
and accessories if something specific is desired. All other supplies
will be provided for use in class.

Each student will leave class with a fully finished piece, and the knowledge to create their own pieces in the future.

Divya Anantharaman
is a Brooklyn based artist whose taxidermy practice was sparked by a
lifelong fascination with natural mythology and everyday oddities. After
a journey filled with trial and error, numerous books, and an inspiring
class (Sue Jeiven's popular Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class at
Observatory!), she has found her calling in creating sickly sweet and
sparkly critters. Beginning with mice and sparrows, her menagerie grew
to include domestic cats, woodchucks, and deer. Recently profiled on
Vice Fringes, the New York Observer, and other publications, she will
also be appearing in the upcoming season of Oddities-and is definitely
up to no good shenanigans. You can find out more at www.d-i-v-y-a.com
Also, some technical notes:

We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.

Everyone will be provided with gloves.

All animals are disease free.

Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone

All animals were already dead, nothing was killed for this class.

Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the class.

_______________________________________________

Mother Machine: an ‘Uncanny Valley’ in the Eighteenth Century
Illustrated lecture with Dr. Brandy Schillace

Known
by a variety of names—“this most curious machine,” “this mock woman,”
and the “celebrated Apparatus” —Dr. William Smellie’s mechanized
obstetrical phantom was both science and spectacle in the eighteenth
century. Strangely, however, though crucial to the training of at least
900 man-midwives in ten years, the machine disappears from both the
actual and rhetorical "scene" of 18th-century obstetrical science.

This
illustrated talk will explore the mitigating factors contributing to
the machine's disappearance. Why was such a valuable teaching tool
auctioned to the public after Smellie’s death? Why did famed
obstetrician William Hunter agree to sell his own copy of the machine to
Dr. Foster of the Dublin Rotunda? And why—after so much popular
debate—does the machine disappear from public notice by the latter part
of the century? Dr. Schillace will also document her own rather
circuitous journey of discovery, that is, the necessary labor of
unearthing (if not birthing) a medical artifact’s unusual history.Dr. Brandy Schillace
is an interdisciplinary, medical-humanist scholar. She writes about
cultural production, history of science, and intersections of medicine
and literature. She is the managing editor of Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry,
an international journal of cross-cultural health research and a guest
curator and blogger for the Dittrick Medical History Museum. Dr.
Schillace was the keynote speaker for the annual meeting of the
Archivists and Librarians in the History of Health Sciences 2013, and is
the recent recipient of the Chawton House Library Fellowship (for study
of 18th century women writers) and the Wood Institute travel grant from
the Philadelphia College of Physicians. She has also an edited book
collection under contingent contract with Cambria Press: Birthing the Monster of Tomorrow: Unnatural Reproductions. For a selection of recently published work, please visit http://fictionreboot-dailydose.com/publications-and-press.

Image: A
late eighteenth-century “birthing phantom.” Unlike Smellie’s machine,
these were not intended to be exactly like the living body, but rather a
basic replica allowing midwives to understand the position of the child
in the birth canal. By permission of the Dittrick Medical History Center and Museum
_______________________________________________

Bram Stoker’s Dracula is often read as a narrative of reverse colonization, revealing fears of degeneration at the fin de siècle.
Anxieties over the decline of empire and—as both symptom and
consequence—the degeneration of masculinity in Victorian Britain
resulted in a number of dystopic narratives, each revealing an uneasy
relationship between evolution and devolution, sexuality, sexual
identity and mental health. However, the signal terror of Stoker’s
vampires lies not only in their overt sexuality and promiscuity—but also
in their fecundity. As Van Helsing warns, the vampire is not a single
foe but a potential army. Both “father” and unnatural mother, Count
Dracula is capable of reproducing the undead—and yet his victims do not,
it seems reproduce themselves.

In this presentation Dr. Schillace
will explore accounts of syphilitic infection as a means of
understanding the complexities of infection among the “innocents,” Lucy
Westenra and the children she victimizes. Culminating in a
re-examination of the only human birth in Stoker’s novel—Mina Harker’s
son Quincy—this project seeks to provide new insight into 19th century
anxieties about degeneration’s naissance.

Dr. Brandy Schillace
is an interdisciplinary, medical-humanist scholar. She writes about
cultural production, history of science, and intersections of medicine
and literature. She is the managing editor of Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry,
an international journal of cross-cultural health research and a guest
curator and blogger for the Dittrick Medical History Museum. Dr.
Schillace was the keynote speaker for the annual meeting of the
Archivists and Librarians in the History of Health Sciences 2013, and is
the recent recipient of the Chawton House Library Fellowship (for study
of 18th century women writers) and the Wood Institute travel grant from
the Philadelphia College of Physicians. She also an edited book
collection under contingent contract with Cambria Press: Birthing the Monster of Tomorrow: Unnatural Reproductions. For a selection of recently published work, please visit http://fictionreboot-dailydose.com/publications-and-press.
_______________________________________________

In
this intimate, hands-on class (limited to only six students), we will
study the happy and hoppy rabbit! Students will create a fully-finished
rabbit mount in a naturalistic or anthropomorphic position. There is
also the option to create a "trophy style" shoulder mount (where the
head and shoulder is mounted on a wooden plaque). When purchasing
ticket, please specify which you would like to do.

Students will
learn everything involved in producing a finished mount - from initial
preparation, hygiene and sanitary measures, to proper technique and dry
preservation. The class will teach how to create a wrapped body form
using the rabbit's own body as reference, and how to reconstruct a
rabbit head using the skull as reference. Students will also be
introduced to the techniques of ear turning and ear carding. The use of
anatomical study, reference photos, and detailed observation will also
be reviewed as important tools in recreating the natural poses and
expressions that magically reanimate a specimen. A selection of props
will be provided, however, students are welcome to bring their own bases
and accessories if something specific is desired. All other supplies
will be provided for use in class.

Each student will leave class with a fully finished piece, and the knowledge to create their own pieces in the future.

Divya Anantharaman
is a Brooklyn based artist whose taxidermy practice was sparked by a
lifelong fascination with natural mythology and everyday oddities. After
a journey filled with trial and error, numerous books, and an inspiring
class (Sue Jeiven's popular Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class at
Observatory!), she has found her calling in creating sickly sweet and
sparkly critters. Beginning with mice and sparrows, her menagerie grew
to include domestic cats, woodchucks, and deer. Recently profiled on
Vice Fringes, the New York Observer, and other publications, she will
also be appearing in the upcoming season of Oddities-and is definitely
up to no good shenanigans. You can find out more at www.d-i-v-y-a.com

Also, some technical notes:

We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.

Everyone will be provided with gloves.

All animals are disease free.

Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone

All animals were already dead, nothing was killed for this class.

Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the class.

Full list and more information on all events can be found here. More on the Morbid Anatomy Art Academy can be found here.